Serenity's Edge
by Midnight Disorientation
Summary: Link and Zelda Havn't seen each other for a long time, but that changes when Link begins to work for the Royal family. As time goes on, Link has convinced himself he could never deserve, or even have a chance with the Princess. Things begin to get complicated as Link discovers the other girls of Hyrule, and Zelda realizes she might lose the boy she's loved forever.
1. The New Recruits

She sat slumped over the paper scribbling a few final details. Her hand swept gently across the finished product.

"Done." she whispered satisfied. In the distance, guards could be heard from the front of the castle shouting orders at one another and assigning posts for the new recruits. As the noise in the distance continued, Zelda's heart began to race, her cheeks becoming pink.

_'Link's first day…'_ she thought dreamily. Excitedly, Zelda jumped around her room squealing, overwhelmed with happiness. As she continued with her childish giggling, there was a knock on the door. Quickly her face went blank and she stood silently.

"Come in." She answered in a care-free voice. Her mother peeked from behind the wooden door. "Hey honey. Are you ready to go greet the new guards?" Xena asked softly. Zelda nodded and couldn't help but smile. Her mother returned the smile and motioned to the hallway. Taking a deep breath, Zelda consumed her anxiety and walked with her mother down the long corridor.

_x~*~*~*~*~ ~*~*~*~*~x_

Link stood in the long line of newly recruiting men. Consisting of most in their early twenties, then a few clumsy teenagers like himself. Across from the line of clueless newbies stood the senior guards who they'd be replacing, his father included. Though he wasn't old, he felt that he could contribute much more to the town that by sitting in front of Hyrule Castle all day waiting for something to happen.

The young boy's mind began to wander as they waited. He would get to see Zelda practically everyday. A slight smile crept across his face as stared into the endless sky.

_'I wonder if she's changed at all…'_ He thought. Link hadn't gotten to talk to Zelda much over the past several years. He'd seen her many times in town and in the temple but much hadn't gone farther than a smile or a simple hello Link was excited to get to know his old friend again.

From the large stone entryway emerged two female figures. Walking gracefully, their long flowing robes followed behind them. The mother and daughter looked upon the people as if they were friends, not subjects. Each man bowed their head as they passed. As Princess Zelda passed by Link, their eyes met. Link blushed slightly and bowed politely. Zelda looked away shyly. She tried to return her thoughts back to the ceremony but her mind seemed to keep thinking about Link.

_'I wonder if he's changed…'_

_x~*~*~*~*~ ~*~*~*~*~x_

After Fifteen minutes of continuous speech, Zelda's mother finally began to finish.

"So Thank You. Congratulations to our new Hylian soldiers. But before we fully conclude, we would like to honor the youngest additions to our little family. The young men who've chosen to protect their beloved home in placement of their summer and final year of schooling. To announce those, please give a warm welcome to Princess Zelda." _ pointed her arms toward the young princess, and everyone began clapping. Her hands grew clammy and she could feel herself becoming nervous. No matter how many times Zelda had spoke in public, she'd always had a streak of anxiety that hit her before a speech.

"Good afternoon my fellow Hylians." Zelda proclaimed confidently. "I-I'd like to personally greet our young guards…uhm…" She stammered as she frantically attempted to open the list of names.

"Groose Saitei, Mido Gokai, and Link Kokiri. If you could please join me on stage." The three boys walked up on the platform. They did not match each other, their different personality's stood out greatly. The first boy approaching was very large and had dark red hair that flung upward in the front, he strutted with false pride. The next boy was a little Kokiri boy, who (being a Kokiri) still looked twelve, though he was seventeen. He followed with a serious look on his face, but who could take a face like that seriously? He stumbled up the large stone steps, which was pursued by quiet cackling from the large boy with red hair. Last up was Link. Tall, lean, and muscular.

Link walked up, focused, and didn't have much of an expression on his face. He was always good at hiding his emotions. They all lined up in front of the Princess.

"You three shall be put to a small test." Zelda spoke. The boys each exchanged odd glances. She smiled.

"Since this year my personal guard, Wiebe, will be retiring, it will be through a test of wits and strength in which my new one will be decided."

The boys each slightly nodded, accepting their forthcoming task.

"Congratulations to Groose, Mido, and Link!" Zelda announced loudly. "The Contest shall commence at noon tomorrow. See you all then."


	2. Practice

Link awoke as the sun peeked out from the horizon. He groaned loudly and slopped halfway off his bed, dragging himself out slowly. How could he be complaining? He was going to see Zelda today. But it was more than that, he was competing for her. The thought that Groose or Mido might even have a chance of watching over her twenty-four seven disgusted him. Maybe it'd be better not to even think about it.

He stood up and brushed his hair into place. Link walked to his wooden dresser and pulled out his new uniform. It was a green tunic, that had come along with a belt and boots.

"Link! You up?" A deep voice called from the hallway. Heavy-footed steps approached his door. Link scrambled into his clothes. "I'm up! I'm up!"

Arn opened the door, finding his son rapidly pulling on his pants, then crashing to the floor. He snickered and offered Link a hand back up. Link mumbled his thanks while he regained his balance and brushed himself off. Arn began to walk off to the living room, and Link followed, now tightening his belt.

"Ahh, first day." Link's father sighed in reminisce while he plopped on the couch. "You excited?"

Link shrugged and nodded. "I guess. We'll see how it goes." He sat down across from his dad.

"And the challenge? Are you ready for that?"

"Well…what should I be expecting from it? A race with a few jumps and turns? Plus I'm facing Groose and Mido, even a bokoblin with no legs could beat those losers." Link stated with a smirk.

"Well lets not get too cocky. I remember in my first days fighting for the princess. But, back in my day it was for her hand in marriage, not to be her personal servant."

Link could feel his hear beat faster and his pupils shrink. '_M-marriage?'_ he thought.

"But that was a looong time ago….haha, I bet if that was still the case there'd be no way in the shadow realm you'd lose." Arn taunted with a side smile.

"W-wha…uhm, n-no." Link averted his gaze away nervously, trying not to act embarrassed. His mind raced for a subject to talk about to get the spot light off himself.

"So you fought to marry queen Xena?" He asked. The friendly smile on his father's face seemed to fade away at the mention of the queen.

Arn cleared his throat. "No. She wasn't the princess back then."

Link gave his father a very confused, weird look. "She wasn't?"

"No, Xena was married into the royal family. Back then the princess was King Daltus's (who back then was Prince Daltus) sister, Katrine. But she had felt that she would never find her perfect suitor and moved to Labrynna."

"Huh…" Link said a bit puzzled. "Were you disappointed?"

Arn shook his head. "Not really..."

"Why not?"

"Because, I was already in love." His father said bluntly. Link could see the slightest bit of sorrow that had cast over his face.

"With who?" Link asked curiously.

"Oh shit, we need to go. You need at least an hour of training before your big event, plus some breakfast." Arn stood up, avoiding eye contact with his son. "Get your boots on and meet me outside."

'_Why had he not answered the question? Was it not my mother he had fallen for so long ago?' _Link wondered.

_x~*~*~*~*~ ~*~*~*~*~x_

Link went and met his father outside as he had asked and they headed off. Arn lead him to outside of the castle's perimeters to Hyrule field, where they continued west to Kakariko village, exchanging no words or communication the entire time. They had finally reached the entrance to Kakariko. It had seemed nothing about this village ever changed, everything just got older. The large wooden sign that overhung at the entrance was rotting and the words were faded. The large windmill slowly turned, it's sails now rough and torn. Even all the people who lived there ten years ago still lived in the exact same house, and had the exact same job.

They walked into the quiet town practically unnoticed, a few waves here and there. Link figured they were on their way to the shooting gallery to practice archery and he was right. It made sense they'd come here, Link liked archery fine but had never been particularly good at it. It seemed everytime he'd shoot an arrow it'd go straight passed the target and end up hitting something important.

The father and son entered the large building to find every practice range empty and a large man sitting at the front desk, obviously bored, flipping through the Hylian Times. It was only until Arn and Link approached the man that he had noticed them. He peered up from his newspaper, then stood. A smile adorned his face.

"Arn!" The man said excitedly. He came out from behind the counter to greet Link's father. Arn smiled in return. They exchanged a strong handshake and a brotherly hug.

"I haven't seen you in ages Randolph! You look great!" Arn exclaimed, happy to see his old friend.

"Ah man, same to you." He smiled, and turned his attention to Link. "And you! Wow, I haven't seen you since you were a little puny thing!"

Link smiled awkwardly. He hated those moments when someone says they remember you being a little kid and you have no idea who the hell they are. But in this case it was a tiny bit different, he could recall his father bringing him here when the place used to be much more lively. All he knew Randolph as was some fat man who they'd see when they came here.

"So what can I do ya for?" Randolph asked returning back to his desk. Arn pulled out a small pouch, and then from within, a shiny red rupee. He placed it on the counter.

"We'll take twenty targets." Arn answered. Randolph looked at the rupee with embarrassment.

"Well, the thing is Arn..." He gulped. "Thanks to all the taxes goin' up, I've had to up my prices in order to keep this place runnin'. So that's about...60 rupees."

"60 rupees!?"Arn shouted. "For twenty measly targets?" He shook his head. "Man, you better be glad your my friend."

He placed 40 more rupees on the counter. In exchange Randolph gave him a bow and twenty practice targets. Arn handed them to his son and motioned him to go off and practice. Link walked to the nearest range and began setting up his targets.

Randolph tried to smile. "You know I'd change it if I could, but this place is my life...I'd have nothing without it. And between you and me." Randolph leaned in closer. "I got a feelin' Hyrule's goin' to be in trouble soon."

_x~*~*~*~*~ ~*~*~*~*~x_

It was almost noon when Link and his father returned back to Castletown. The whole morning had seemed to go by so quickly. Link had spent it running, shooting, and ended up doing more than fifty push-ups. He was tired and his arms felt like jello. He arrived at the castle moments before the sun hit its highest point in the sky. Link could see a small crowd around the stage where Mido and Groose sat waiting. Just the sight of those idiots aggravated him. He didn't want to see or even talk to them. '_Why the hell were they even accepted? How the fuck could they ever protect anything? How-'_

Link felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to find Zelda next to him, smiling. His anger and frustrations disappeared.

"Good luck today Link." She said sweetly. Her hand swept down his arm, then back to her side and she walked off.

Link smiled. _'I'm going to win.'_ He thought. _'I have to.'_


	3. The Challenge

She paced back and forth back inside the castle. 'What if Link doesn't win?' Zelda thought nervously.

'What if Mido ends up winning? He could never protect me. Or even-' A disgusted look crept over her face. 'Groose.' A chill ran down Zelda's spine and she shivered violently.

Inhaling deeply, she attempted to calm herself. 'I'm fine.' Those two words repeatedly ran that through the princess's mind. She made her way through the hallway, but something outside the window caught her attention. Zelda could see the boys all sitting on the stage, Groose was picking on Mido, and Link just sat there. She smiled at the sight of the blond boy, then continued on.

_'Farore, Nayru, Din, hear me. Please let Link succeed.'_

_x~*~*~*~*~ ~*~*~*~*~x_

The three boys sat on the stage, eagerly waiting for the ceremony to begin. Groose turned to Link and Mido. He let out a haughty laugh.

"Look at you losers!" Groose said pointing at the other boys. "Like either of you could even have a chance at beating me." He leaned in towards Mido and flicked his hat off, it fluttered down off the edge of the stage. Mido chased after it in frustration then tried pulling himself back up.

"Hahaha look at the midget trying to get up!" Mido almost had made it, but was shoved back onto the ground.

"Groose don't be such as asshole." Link mumbled, glaring at Groose. He offered his hand to the small Kokiri boy. Mido refused Link's gesture.

"I can do it myself." Mido responded stubbornly. He tried once again pulling himself on the stage but was just pushed back down. Groose laughed even harder.

"Awww, is the poor midget still upset about Linky dating Saria?" Groose teased trying to provoke Mido. Mido's face grew bright red and his eyes began to tear up.

"Don't you ever fucking talk about Saria you selfish ass!" Mido yelled, pointing at Groose. "I'm going to win this contest! That'll show you!" He shouted even louder then stormed off to the opposing end of the stage.

Groose snickered and turned to Link. "What an idiot. Like Zelda would ever notice a dwarf like him."

Link glanced at Groose with an 'why are you such a jerk?' look. Groose just smirked. "That Zelda…some piece of ass don't cha think?"

Hearing Groose, of all people, say something like that just about set Link off, but he managed to keep his cool. Groose could tell by the way Link slightly responded after that comment, that talking about Zelda in such a manner upset him. Satisfied, he continued.

"After I win, and become her protector, you know what I'm going to do?" He shot Link a smug smile and leaned in. "I'm gunna take advantage of that royal bitch, and tap her sooo hard."

That did it. Link's hand became a fist and smacked Groose square in the jaw. He shrieked in agony. Link stood up nonchalantly and walked over to where Mido resided like nothing happened. Groose stared at Link in shock, a mixture of blood and saliva dribbled from his mouth. Just as the infuriated red-haired boy began to start towards Link, Zelda approached them. The ceremony was ready to begin.

_x~*~*~*~*~ ~*~*~*~*~x_

A rather large crowd was gathered this time. Now it consisted of guards, commoners and anyone else willing to watch. It hadn't seemed that exciting in general, but when there's nothing more to do in the early summer days, you go where the crowd takes you.

"Good afternoon people of Hyrule!" Queen Xena greeted loudly. "The events to take place today shall determine whom of all these brave lads, is courageous and strong enough to watch over our beloved princess. Each boy shall venture to a part of Hyrule, and bring back certain items only available in that particular area." She smiled and Zelda walked on the stage.

"So uhm, the way this challenge shall commence is by first, randomly assigning each boy a section of land to explore." Zelda said semi-confidently. She motioned to a knight, and he quickly ran to her, handing her a small bowl with several pieces of tiny papers within it. The princess nodded in gratitude and he scurried off.

"First up, Groose Saitei!" Zelda announced. Groose gave a sly smile, (blood still on his lips) and strutted up to the bowl. He reached in, grabbed a paper scrap and handed it to Zelda, winking.

_'Ew.'_

"Gerudo valley!" She yelled happily. The toughest challenge. The crowded cheered with excitement. Next Mido walked up and drew his paper.

"…uhm. K-Kokiri forest…" Zelda stammered. The crowed clapped lightly. It seemed unfair that a Kokiri had received the Kokiri forest, the easiest challenge, not to mention he grew up and lived there. Mido jumped with joy and returned back to the line of boys, he couldn't believe how incredibly easy his task would be.

Link stared at Mido surprisingly. The crowd stared at him, waiting for him to draw the final paper. Link walked up, and hesitantly reached him hand in the clay bowl. There was only two places left to be chosen. Death Mountain and Zora's Domain.

_'For the love of the Goddesses, ANYTHING'but Zora's domain.'_ Link pleaded.

He passed the scrap of paper to Zelda. Her hand felt chilled but they were very soft. What he'd give to hold her hand and warm her up. She took the paper delicately from his hand and opened it.

"The final destination shall be…Death Mountain!"

The crowd cheered. Link sighed with heavy relief. As he turned to retreat back to his fellow classmates, he had notice out of the corner of his eye something odd. Zelda dropped all the little papers back into the bowl, but the last one she dropped in didn't have 'Death Mountain' written on it, but something that started with a Z.

_x~*~*~*~*~ ~*~*~*~*~x_

Half an hour passed, consisting only of Queen Xena's excessive talking. The stone courtyard seemed to bake in the blistering heat. Link wiped the dripping sweat off of his forehead and tried to tune in.

"After addressing these issues, the bombchu bowling alley should be up and running with no problems at all. So back on track here, we'll now announce the items to be gathered and brought back." Xena cleared her throat. "From the Gerudo valley, Nabooru's sword, special Gerudo training arrows, and the body of a small leever from the haunted wasteland. From the Kokiri forest, a leaf from the great deku tree, the Kokiri sword, and a mushroom." Link rolled his eyes at the easy task, wishing he had been the one that had received it.

"And as for the Death Mountain challenge, Darunia's power bracelet, a flower bomb, and a special rock from within Dodongo's cavern." She turned to then smiling. "Do you got all that?"

Each boy nodded confidently. "You have until sunset. Go!" They were off.

_x~*~*~*~*~ ~*~*~*~*~x_

Link was in disbelief of how easy his challenge was. Easy items from a place that took barely a half and hour to reach. Darunia's power bracelet had probably seemed like one of the most difficult items to acquire, but the thing was, he already had it. Him and his father were very close with the Goron tribe, practically brothers, and had received it as a gift when he was little.

Groose ran past Link and Mido, knocking them both to the ground as he past, hoping to stall. "So long losers!" He yelled sticking his tongue out at them. Furious, Mido ran as fast as he could to the gate, trying to catch up with the bully. Link on the other hand walked to the draw bridge in no rush at all. He really wasn't worried about losing now. Groose would make the mistake of hitting on one of the Gerudo's (AKA haters of men.), and it would probably take Mido a full hour to reach the entrance to the Kokiri forest on his short little legs.

Link let out a relaxing sigh, "Zelda, here I come."

_x~*~*~*~*~ ~*~*~*~*~x_

It was mid-day by the time Link returned back to Castletown. He strolled into town and stopped by his house to pick up the bracelet. Thinking it might be a little suspicious to return so early, he decided to kill half an hour by playing with his bow outside. Even though it was still early Link began his return to Hyrule Castle. He could just imagine it, Zelda being so happy he had won and overcome the challenges (even though they weren't much of a challenge), or maybe even a rewarding kiss. He smiled lost in the day dream then snapped out of it as soon as he reached the courtyard…Mido?!


	4. Later

"One has returned!" A voice yelled from the crowd. Zelda sprang up with a big smile, but that smile quickly vanished. Little foot steps waddled up the stone steps toward the stage, whom of which carried a leaf, mushroom and a sword strapped to his back. It was Mido. Mido proudly strode toward Princess Zelda and placed the items before her. He knelt, grabbed her hand and kissed it.

"For you my Princess." He whispered with sincerity. Zelda could feel the goose-bumps crawl from her arm to her neck. She withdrew her hand back to her side and nodded, attempting a smile.

"T-thank you" She said, trying not gag. "Uhm, could someone please come place our…winners, items upon the pedestal?" Zelda spat, talking to no one in particular. One of the knights rushed to their side, gathered Mido's offerings, then scurried off. A little while later, her mother gave another long-winded speech of nothing but periodic blabber, while Zelda looked about the crowd, seeing if Link had returned yet. A little while after Xena had finished, she spotted him. He rushed in through the castle gate, smiling. Then, much as hers did earlier, it quickly faded at the sight of Mido.

'_Link…why couldn't it have been you?'_

___x~*~*~*~*~ ~*~*~*~*~x_

Unable to comprehend the truth before his eyes, Link stood paralyzed. Mido was up on the stage with a big grin. Zelda was up there too, but she didn't look so happy… Link slowly made his way to there crowd and looked up at his opposer, he couldn't believe it. Mido looked down at Link with a spiteful smirk.

"This is payback." Mido whispered. Though their surroundings were very loud, Link seemed to know what Mido had said, and that he truly meant it.

Apparently Link had shown up late, for they had already announce the news of Mido's victory. His items were placed on a large stone pedestal in the opposite end of the courtyard. Link walked over to the pedestal and glanced up at them. The Kokiri sword, A leaf from the great Deku Tree, and a mushroom.

'_A mushroom? They really couldn't have thought of anything harder to find? Pathetic.'_ Link thought enviously.

He grunted and left. On his way home memories filled his mind of his childhood. Him and his father would go pick the fresh mushrooms every fall and make a special Kokiri soup. His mouth watered just thinking about that yearly treat. Then he remembered something. It was the beginning of summer… and those mushrooms didn't grow until fall…

_x~*~*~*~*~ ~*~*~*~*~x_

The crowd began to disperse as the sun sunk back down towards the horizon and the evening sky filled between the clouds. Beautiful colors of red, orange and yellow swirled together like sherbet, and pink and purple seemed to paint themselves upon the clouds. Mido waited around for a while, being given instruction of his new job for tomorrow. Zelda sighed aloud and sulked off, making her way back inside the castle. She pulled out a folded paper from within her white-laced gloves and carefully opened it. It was a drawing, depicting a young boy and girl flying on giant, elegant bird-like creatures. Zelda held it tightly and began to fight back tears.

_x~*~*~*~*~ ~*~*~*~*~x_

'_Could you just imagine? Humongous birds swooping down from the sky! We could fly them, and they'd take us any where we'd wanna go!' The blonde boy said with great exaggeration and excitement._

_The little girl smiled and turned to the boy. 'Do you really think something that could exist?'_

'_Of course it could…' He answered back, now staring into the sky. 'Ya know what Zelda? I'm going to find you one of the birds one day, even if I have to travel all of Hyrule.' Link touched her hand, and looked into her ice-crystal eyes then whispered,_

'_I promise.'_

___x~*~*~*~*~ ~*~*~*~*~x_

Link now was sprinting back to the castle and deliver the news, Mido had cheated! Flying past the guards, he had caught Zelda right before she had entered the castle. She turned to him delighted.

"Z-Zelda. I…" He trailed off as his eyes wandered towards the item in hand. "What's that?"

She felt her face grow pink. "Oh, this? Uhm, it was just, uh… Well, I drew it for you." Zelda held out the drawing to her friend and he gently took it from her. His eyes scanned the page, and he couldn't help but grin shyly. Link let out a small, but very happy laugh.

"It's a loftwing…"

Zelda turned away embarrassed and began chuckling. "Haha, you remembered." She smiled sweetly. "And there's you and me." She glanced up at him.

'_He's so grown up now…It seems time have flown away with the loftwings.'_

Link nodded and glanced up at her. "I like it. I-it's really good." He wished he could just stay locked in that moment forever, just staring at her beautiful face. Not wanting to ruin the moment, he decided not to bring up the runt who ruined his job. Within one of the next few days he'd find a time where it would be perfect and he'd be able to expose Mido for the little swindler he was, but not now.

"So do you still promise me you're going to find one?"

"Heh, we'll see." Link scratched the back of his head awkwardly, feeling too mature for such a conversation.

After that, they stood in the silence awkwardly. Zelda rocked back a forth, looking towards the ground. He wanted to just kiss her. Hold her and tell her she meant everything to him, but he held his restraint. He feared that if the truth was spilt, she would not return his feelings and their friendship would be shattered.

"So, I guess I should probably be heading home now...but uh, thanks for the drawing." He stated subtly. Zelda's emotions sank.

"…Oh yeah,…okay. Then I guess I'll see you tomorrow." Disappointment cast a shadow over her, yet she managed to hide it and just look happy. Zelda began to lift her arms out slightly for a friendly hug, but Link took a small step back, turned around and walked off. They were both fully aware that he acknowledged her gesture, yet he had rejected it. She frowned as he walked away.

'_He didn't even want to hug me…'_

'_She was just moving her arms, probably stretching. Why would she ever hug me? I can't even imagine how idiotic I would have felt if I had reached out to hug her.'_

___x~*~*~*~*~ ~*~*~*~*~x_

Xena caught Zelda on her way back in from the courtyard.

"Have you seen Groose?"


	5. Starting the job

The cuccos crowed, alerting Hyrule that it was once again morning, and a new day. The castle guards who stood among the outer walls of Castletown lowered the draw bridge, opening up there town to visitors. As soon as the wooden bridge was fully lowered, it was taken into notice that there was a body lying face-down within the grassland. A guard swiftly raced down to the edge of Hyrule field in which the body lied. He flipped the boy onto his back, he was bruised, and many minor injuries were visible on him.

"Son, are you alright?" The guard asked to the bruised boy, shaking his shoulders, trying to wake him. He blinked his eyes open.

"My…my…" He stuttered in a whisper, reaching his arm towards his head.

"Your what? Kid, what happened?" The man became more concerned now, shaking him more violently.

"….My hair. How is it?" Groose asked desperately. The guard stopped and gave him a very odd look.

"Your…hair?" He wasn't sure if he had heard the boy correctly, but Groose nodded, reassuring the man. The guard really didn't know how to reply to the dim-witted kid, so he stood up silently and offered him his hand. Groose reached out and attempted to pull himself up. It took a little while, him being more on the husky side and the fact that most of his body was bruised. He stumbled up and limped back to the castle with help from the guard. Groose told him that he needed to be at the castle immediately, because he had important news for the queen, regarding his task.

When they entered Hyrule Castle's parameters, Groose left the man helping his and began trying his best to run. He was almost to the entrance when he tripped and face-planted directly in front of the door. It opened. Groose peered upward. A small boy snickered at the sight of him. Step aside commoner, the Princess is coming though. Groose got up and stood back a little ways letting Zelda walked by. Mido follower her, flipping off Groose as he passed. Zelda continued walking on, then quickly turned around.

"Groose!" She yelled surprisingly, rushing towards him. "Where have you been? What happened?" She asked obviously concerned, examining his blood-dried face. Groose smiled the best he could at Zelda.

"The Gerudo….uhmm, well they kinda, *gulp* beat me up." He said embarrassed. Zelda couldn't help but giggle.

She sighed. "And I'm just going to take a guess that they had good reason too." Groose chuckled slightly.

"Haha maybe just a little…but the odd thing was, I've met Gerudos before, and they don't act like they had been yesterday." Zelda looked at Groose puzzled. "By what do you mean?"

"Well when I arrived, there was no one at the entrance to their hideout. As I walked in, I felt something very heavy hit my head then everything went black. When I awoke, my hands and feet were tied, and I was propped up on a stone wall. Nabooru appeared before me, and she didn't look happy."

"I understand they're a bit more on the feminist side but I can't imagine them acting like that…Did Nabooru say anything?"

"I couldn't make out most of what she was saying due to the fact I was still dizzy from the blow to the head, but what I could make out was something about 'no Hylians being allowed into their land' and 'the return of The King.'."

Zelda thought for a minute…"This makes no sense… why would they forbid Hylians into their land? We've had a treaty for years…" She trailed off in thought.

"Well I got no idea, but they were being super bitc- uhm, mean. They, they were just not too nice…" Groose stuttered.

Zelda ignored his almost-profanity and continued on with her thought. "And the 'King' part… My father is in Labrynna with my brother at the moment and will be returning within the next few days but, why would they would they be awaiting his return?"Groose shrugged.

Mido stood silently, darting his eyes between Groose and Zelda. "Maybe they have important new for him." He suggested, trying to be apart of the conversation.

"No, they would of notified us by now if that were the case." Zelda drummed her fingers on her cheek. "I'll inform my father as soon as he returns."

"Why not just tell Queen Xena?" Mido asked curiously.

"All she'll do is worry. This can wait."

x~*~*~*~*~ ~*~*~*~*~x

Arn rushed into Link's room. He was upside down, blanket on the ground, and his pillow was atop his dresser. Arn shook his son awake.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?!" He yelled. Startled, Link's arm flew outward as a reflex, resulting in hitting his father in the face.

"Oh my Golden Goddesses! I'm so sorry!" Link apologized in a yell. Arn growled and rubbed his face. Link gasped. "Shit! What time of day is it!?" Arn pointed out the window. "Obviously not morning!"

Link staggered out of bed to his dresser and quickly slipped on his clothes, mumbling 'shit' and other cuss words repeatedly. His father shook his head in disappointment.

"So much for a good first impression…" He mumbled scoldingly, as Link ran past him out the door.

_'Ugh! I'm so stupid! How could I sleep in on my first day?! Now I'm gunna get some shitty post assigned to me and I'll never get my chance to get closer with Zelda!'_

He raced up the steps toward the castle, running into one of the head guards.

"Wow wow wow, what's the rush son?" He asked, catching Link by the collar. Link looked down in humiliation.

"I'm, uh, late…" He admitted uneasily.

The guard studied him for a minute. "You're Arn's kid ain't you?" He asked slyly. Link nodded. "Haha, easy resemblance. The name's Ward, I'm your boss."

Link stared at Ward timidly. Ward still smiled. "Uhm…so, sorry I'm busy, but I'm ready to get to work right away."

The warden studied the blond teenager for a brief moment. "Weeeell, Since your original post has been filled, I believe the only option we have left for you _is_ in front of Castletown."

"Like, just making sure no one suspicious enters?"

"Pretty much."

Link was silent for a minute. "If I may ask, what was my original post?"

Ward laughed. "Just hangin' out in the castle. Ya know, running about, doin' errands for the royalty or whatever. But like I said, the position's been filled."

Link let out a breath. "Oh yeah, that's alright. Sounds boring anyway. So I'll just go to the front and see what I can do for whoever." He waved in thanks to Ward and walked off.

_'Fuck.'_

x~*~*~*~*~ ~*~*~*~*~x

Arn was cooking dinner when Link came home. "That was one of the most stupidest days of my entire life." Link complained.

Arn laughed. "Well there are lots more to come."

He glared at his father and then rolled his and purposely collapse to the ground, groaning loudly.

"Okay, okay. What happened?" Arn asked, trying his best to be a 'good father'.

"For starters, I got posted at the front of Castletown, making sure nobody looks suspicious." Arn couldn't help but laugh again at his son's crappy post. "And then, some weirdo with blue hair shows up with a caged wagon filled with cuccos! The wagon hit q small crack on the concrete, the cage tipped, and next thing you know, cuccos everywhere! The man thought that somehow it was my fault and told me it was my responsibility to gather up all those stupid creatures and fix his stupid wagon! I tried to reason with him, but all he wanted to do was argue. So I had to give in, and chase the things around. When I finally grabbed one, it started attacking me, then all of a sudden, I was being chased around the marketplace by at least 10 of them!

Now Arn couldn't stop laughing. "So it sounds like you had a rough first day!"

"Long-story short, someone ended up helping him and I got to go back to work." He sighed relieving aggravation.

Arn patted his son on the back and gave him a partial hug. "It'll get better, don't worry. Now lets eat."

Later that night, after dinner, Link threw off his clothes and jumped in his bed. He looked around his room then out the window. The moon was full and shown bright, it was beautiful. Link turned to his nightstand, on which was a the folded drawing Zelda had given him. He smiled at sight of it, then remember. "I didn't even get to see her..." He whispered, each word filled with disappointment. He closed his eyes and prayed to the Goddesses.

"Please, just let me be with her." His vision began blurring. "...let me be with her…" Tears in his eyes, he finally drifted off.

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hey guise, really hope y'all like this chapter, sorry it took so long to post. I'd reaaally appreciate some reviews, I'd like to hear what you guys think about it, any suggestions,what you'd like to see, questions, or whatever else. I'd loooove some feedback :3 Thanxxx**


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